Generalized Anxiety Disorder

GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER

A person with GAD worries excessively and feels highly anxious at least 50% of the time for 6 months or more. Unable to control this focus on worry, the person has three or more of the following symptoms: uneasiness, irritability, muscle tension, fatigue, difficulty thinking, and sleep alterations. More people with this chronic disorder are seen by family physicians than by psychiatrists. The qual-ity of life is diminished greatly in older adults with GAD. Buspirone (BuSpar) and SSRI antidepressants are the most effective treatments (Starcevic, 2006).